BNBU conferred honorary fellowships on five distinguished individuals in science, education, and culture on 8 June 2025. The recipients include: Nobel Laureate in Economics and Member of the US National Academy of Sciences, Prof Robert John Aumann; Member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chairman of the Chinese Society for Probability and Statistics, Prof Chen Songxi; American Sinologist and Emeritus Professor from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Prof William H. Nienhauser, Jr.; National Advanced Individual in Poverty Alleviation, and Founder of the Adream Foundation, Ms Pan Jiangxue; and Founder of SML Group and Founding President of Jao Tsung-I Petite Ecole Fan Club, Dr Simon Siu Man Suen.

Prof Robert John Aumann; Prof Chen Songxi; Prof William H. Nienhauser, Jr.; Ms Pan Jiangxue; and Dr Simon Siu Man Suen (from left) are conferred as BNBU' Honorary Fellowships

Prof Chen Songxi

The conferment ceremony was chaired by Dr Wang Shoujun, Chairman of the BNBU Council and Executive Vice President of Beijing Normal University. Dr the Hon Kennedy Wong Ying-ho, Chairman of the Council and the Court of Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU), and HKBU President Prof Alexander Wai also attended the ceremony.

A press conference was held following the ceremony, joined by well-known news outlets, including China News Service, Economic Daily, Southern Daily, 21st Century Business Herald, Southern Metropolis Daily, Guangdong Television Station, Zhuhai Media Group and Jornal “Va Kio”.

At the conference，Prof Chen Songxi highlighted how statistics can enhance AI. “Statistical procedure algorithms do not really require a huge amount of computation. So I think with statistics plus AI will reduce the load of computation, increase the interpretability and reproducibility of AI algorithms, and make AI greener,” he said. As for talent cultivation, he encouraged industry practitioners to return to campus and apply newly acquired skills to real-world challenges.

A conferment banquet was held later, where HKBU Senior Presidential Advisor Prof Ricky Wong, BNBU President Prof Chen Zhi and BNBU Provost Prof Patrick Chau presented the certificates to the Fellows.

BNBU President Prof Chen Zhi with Pro Chen Songxi